Pain Management: Easing Pain in Palliative Care

Pain Management: Easing Pain in Palliative Care is a crucial course offered by the University of Colorado System. Throughout the program, participants will develop a systems view for assessing and managing pain in the palliative care setting. The course covers various essential aspects, including understanding the pain problem, assessing pain in nonverbal or cognitively impaired individuals, exploring integrative therapies, medication management, and addressing opioid safety and addiction. The comprehensive content delves into pain assessment basics, non-pharmacological pain treatments, medication management, and the complexities of opioids. Learners will gain insights into the benefits of integrative therapies and pharmacologic strategies for managing pain effectively.

The course is structured into five modules:

• Pain: This module introduces the fundamentals of pain, including its transmission, barriers to control, and assessment basics.
• Non-Pharmacological Pain Treatment: Participants will explore integrative therapies, traditional and nontraditional body-based therapies, mind-body therapies, and topical therapies for pain management.
• Medication Management: Learners will gain an understanding of non-opioid medication management, common side effects, and the appropriate use of non-opioid medicines.
• Opioids, Safety, and Addiction: This module addresses the use of opioids for pain relief, including their forms, changing from one opioid to another, and the complexities of addiction, pseudo-addiction, physical dependence, and tolerance.
• Easing Pain: Assessment: This module focuses on the assessment of pain, providing learners with the necessary tools to evaluate and manage pain effectively in palliative care settings.